Wrangler

STILLWATER -- A prosecutor said Monday he expects to file hazing charges against as many as six members of the Oklahoma State University chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity amid allegations that members beat pledges.

One pledge was beaten so badly that he went to an emergency room and was later advised by medical personnel to have a consultation with a plastic surgeon, police said.

The OSU chapter has been shut down by its national organization.

"When you have a young man hazed to the extent that he's going to have to have plastic surgery, that's crossing the line," District Attorney Rob Hudson said.

"I've been DA for more than a decade -- this is the first time we've been presented a charge of this type, hazing involving a fraternity," Hudson said.

The prosecutor said his office received a report on Friday from the Stillwater Police Department on allegations that several pledges of Alpha Phi Alpha had been hazed by being hit with wooden paddles.

Stillwater Police Lt. Mike Metcalf said that the parents of the most severely injured pledge contacted police on Feb. 15.

Their son's injuries "include abrasions to both elbows, contusions to the chest and back, and the loss of
all skin layers in an approximately two-inch diameter area of the buttock," Detective Greg Miller wrote in a search warrant affidavit to take photographs of other pledges' bodies.

The severely injured pledge, who is from Tulsa, went to the Stillwater Medical Center's emergency room on Feb. 13 for treatment, Metcalf said. The pledge said "he was told by fra ternity members to lie to the doctors about how he got the injury," Metcalf said. "It was a bad injury," he said.

The next day, the pledge went to the OSU Health Center in Stillwater for a bandage change and was told he needed to have a consultation with a plastic surgeon, Metcalf said. That's when he told his parents what had been happening, Metcalf said.

The pledge reportedly told police that from Jan. 22 to Feb. 10, he attended "set" meetings, held five or six nights a week, at which pledges received physical "punishment" for failure to recall information about the fraternity, the affidavit said. He also took the "punishment" for another pledge who had "some kind of medical condition and couldn't take these paddlings," Metcalf said.

Police -- who weren't sure if the alleged victims in the case would be cooperative -- obtained search warrants to take photographs of the four other pledges to document suspected injuries, Metcalf said.

One had no clearly identifiable injury, Metcalf said. "The others had different stages of healing -- or you could see the outline of the paddles on their skin, mostly their buttocks," Metcalf said.

"A couple would take strikes on their abdomen and chest, but they wouldn't be hit as hard," Metcalf said the pledges told police.

All of the alleged hazing took place off campus, Metcalf said.

Metcalf said Alpha Phi Alpha, which he's been told had just six members and five pledges at OSU, did not have a fraternity house.

Metcalf said some pledges "got six or seven swats each time," during the meetings.

Ten wooden paddles of varying sizes were seized on a search warrant from a fraternity member's apartment, where many of the "set" meetings were allegedly held, according to a search warrant.

"This is a very serious matter involving allegations of student actions that are strictly prohibited and will not be tolerated at Oklahoma State University," OSU spokesman Gary Shutt said in a statement.

"We are addressing the incident through our student conduct committee, while cooperating fully with local law enforcement authorities. Regard ing the status of the fraternity, the national fraternity organization issued a 'cease and desist' order for the local chapter. Since the local chapter is no longer functioning, OSU will await a ruling from the national organization before taking action against the fraternity," Shutt said.

In an interview Monday, Shutt said that a student conduct panel, comprised of two faculty members, two students and a staff member, this week "will hear the case and make a recommendation on disciplinary action as far as their status as students."

Shutt said that recommendation would be forwarded to Lee Bird, vice president of student affairs.

Shutt said the fraternity members allegedly involved "have been attending classes, but they are not allowed to take part in other activities." No action has been taken against the alleged victims, Shutt said.

Hazing, and assault and battery -- both misdemeanors -- carry a possible 90-day jail term on conviction, Hudson said.

"Society has made a decision not to tolerate physical hazing," he said.

Lettin' the high times carry the low....

The Greek system is just a way for the white, weak and privledged to act childish without recourse for four years. How stupid do you have to be to let your bought friends hit you still you have to go the emergency room.

Cowboy

40 years ago I pledged a fraternity at Western Michigan University. At least twice a month we stripped to our underwear, stood in a circle, and had our butts beat to a bloody mess. I grew to love my "brothers" so much I haven't seen a one of them in thirty-five years. What a bunch of crap!! I'd like to find them and beat the crap out of every last one!!

Moderator

Greek life is just like everything else. For some it works well (I loved my time at FarmHouse) and for others, not so much. Different people have different tastes and different needs.

Hazing is completely unacceptable and I can honestly say that I never once felt that I was being hazed.

For me, I loved the constant social interaction. The ability to get help with about anything if I needed it from studies (which FH has the best history of scholarship at OSU) to organization to about a million other things that come to mind. I can honestly say that FH was a big part of the final maturation process that I needed coming out of a small high school (Wyandotte) and going to a huge campus like OSU.

I can't say that I have daily or even weekly contact with others from my frat, but I do have a few that I send e-mails to pretty regularly.

The crap that these clowns pulled isn't indicative of any experience I ever had.

Sheriff

The Greek system is just a way for the white, weak and privledged to act childish without recourse for four years. How stupid do you have to be to let your bought friends hit you still you have to go the emergency room.

Alrighty Donnyboy, before you use this to bash social fraternities, first realize your statement is incorrect as Alpha Phi Alpha is a "black" fraternity, so they are not just for white people.

Also, I was in a frat and was not even close to being privileged. I payed for my own school (usually by working at a steel mill in the summers). It helped me develop socially as I was very much an introvert before I got to college.

Do people do stupid stuff in frats... yes and you can find the same thing in just about every other organization in the country... don't have too look far... like the Catholic church (just first example that came to mind, not trying to call out the church)...

Wrangler

The Greek system is just a way for the white, weak and privledged to act childish without recourse for four years. How stupid do you have to be to let your bought friends hit you still you have to go the emergency room.

Lettin' the high times carry the low....

Alrighty Donnyboy, before you use this to bash social fraternities, first realize your statement is incorrect as Alpha Phi Alpha is a "black" fraternity, so they are not just for white people.

Also, I was in a frat and was not even close to being privileged. I payed for my own school (usually by working at a steel mill in the summers). It helped me develop socially as I was very much an introvert before I got to college.

Do people do stupid stuff in frats... yes and you can find the same thing in just about every other organization in the country... don't have too look far... like the Catholic church (just first example that came to mind, not trying to call out the church)...

Okay so the black frat did this but why are there black frats and white frats? Does OSU have black classes and white classes. Ever seen a black Theta or Pi Phi........How about a black AGR or Figi.........no? You mean in the long history of OSU there has never been a black student interested in all the many benefits of the greek system?

The difference in just about every other organization in the country and the greek system is the school endorses the greek system. If I said the school the going to host a week to celebrate a campus group who is essentially segregated, has known widespread underage drinking, has known rites of passage many which include spanking, and has generated arrests multiple times..........you would say thats crazy. But if I said its Greek Week all would be well.

Cowboy

Okay so the black frat did this but why are there black frats and white frats? Does OSU have black classes and white classes. Ever seen a black Theta or Pi Phi........How about a black AGR or Figi.........no? You mean in the long history of OSU there has never been a black student interested in all the many benefits of the greek system?

The difference in just about every other organization in the country and the greek system is the school endorses the greek system. If I said the school the going to host a week to celebrate a campus group who is essentially segregated, has known widespread underage drinking, has known rites of passage many which include spanking, and has generated arrests multiple times..........you would say thats crazy. But if I said its Greek Week all would be well.

I'm not sure what you're getting at, but when I was in school, yes there was a black Fiji. And a black Phi Mu. And, there were African-Americans who went through rush every year, I'm just not sure where they ended up.

Lettin' the high times carry the low....

Look if people want to be in the Greek system good for them, it is their time and money. My deal is the schools involvment....err endorsement of the greek system. It is just not the type of group that any school would be associated with if it wasn't grandfathered in.